CU golfers post second best final round team score

SAN DIEGO — The University of Colorado men’s golf team could have gone out there in the rain and wind Friday and tanked things after a disappointing opening two rounds here in the Barona Collegiate Cup. Instead, the Buffaloes gutted it out, posted the second best final round score and finished tied for seventh in the 16-team event.

CU was able to zoom up six spots in the standings as fairly heavy rain fell for about three hours during the round, with winds steady between 10 and 15 miles per hour, making conditions cold, wet and generally miserable despite the temperature being in the low 50s.

No. 8 and host San Diego State rallied to win its own event, thanks to the Aztecs posting by far the best final round score at 3-under par 357. That led to a final tally of 1,079 strokes, more than enough to overtake second round leader, No. 21 San Diego, by seven shots.

Colorado, 12th after the first round and 13th through 36 holes, recorded a 13-over 373 score in the final round, second only to the Aztecs’ amazing total, and an 1,127 score overall, as the Buffs passed four teams and caught two others in matching their second best finish of the 2010-11 season.

“On our end, the guys really did a good job of toughing it out,” CU head coach Roy Edwards said. “Kevin (Kring) was pretty much out of it almost from the get-go, so we knew who the five players were who were going count (toward the team score), which made it even more challenging. Those five guys did a great good job of fighting and grinding. Other than San Diego State, obviously almost every other team had their assortment of problems. We can be nothing but proud of the effort today and expect this to continue through the remainder of the spring.”

The average score in the field Friday was 78.3, but the five players scoring for the Buffs came in at 74.6, topped only by San Diego State, with all six at 76.0, bettered by just the top three teams. Kring actually was only 2-over after five holes, but two players were 1-under with three others even out of the gate.

“We’re definitely used to these kinds of conditions, but most of the teams were,” Edwards added. “When things got bad, we didn’t freak out and the guys were prepared for it. There wasn’t any complaining, they put their heads down and kept plugging along. They knew there’d be a bogey or two here and there, and they dealt with it. I think that shows growth of the team.”

Senior Luke Symons turned in CU’s top performance for the second time this week, tying for 11th after a closing 2-over 74 gave him a 219 (3-over) total on the 7,324-yard, par-72 Barona Creek Black course layout. It was his second best major tournament finish this season, along with his 13th career top 20 effort. He had a fairly steady round, with three birdies and 10 pars against five bogeys, and finished in the top 10 in the meet for par-4 (+3, ninth) and par-5 (-3, 10th) scoring. He took over the team lead in scoring average with a 74.24 mark.

Junior Sebastian Heisele tied for 22nd, his second best effort of the year, as he carded a 1-over 73 in the final round for a 7-over 223 total. He led the Buffs in pars here with 36, tied for fourth in the 100-man field, and also had a team-low 11 holes of bogey or worse over 54 holes. He had 12 pars for the third straight round Friday, with three birdies, two bogeys and a double.

Sophomore Jason Burstyn, who had assumed the team’s stroke average lead (74.2) coming in, shot a 4-over 76 for a 13-over 229 total, tying him for 49th. He had three birdies, eight pars and seven bogeys in the final round, recording a team-best 10 birdies for the meet; that tied for 10th most in the field, and a bit impressive when remembering he started with seven straight bogeys in the opening round before settling in.

Sophomore Derek Fribbs recorded CU’s best final round score, an even-par 72, as he also tied for 49th overall with a 229 score. He rallied from a second round 82 to shave 10 strokes off his game on the strength of four birdies and 10 pars Friday. He had eight birdies all told, opening each of his three rounds with either pars or a birdie as he was 1-under at one point each 18.

Sophomore Johnny Widmer fired a second straight 78 to finish at 15-over 231, tying him for 59th. He scored an eagle on the par-5 1st hole, CU’s only one in two days and just one of 13 in the field, eight coming on that hole. Widmer also had 10 pars, six bogeys and a double Friday, with his 34 pars overall tied for 13th most.

Kring finished up with an 83 for a 23-over score of 239, which tied him for 87th, ending a rough two days for the normally steady CU junior. He had more holes over par (25, including 10 bogeys Friday) than pars (24) for the first time in his collegiate career.

UC-Santa Barbara’s Glen Scher claimed medalist honors, finishing up with an even par round and a 7-under 209 total, defeating Nevada’s Scott Smith by one stroke; the two had been 1-2 through two rounds and Smith also shot a 72 Friday.

The Buffs return to action in two weeks at the Wyoming Cowboy Classic, which will be played Scottsdale, Ariz., April 4-5.